The Felkrast Empire
Background Formerly The Felkrast Court during the Quartet Era of Veer, The Felkrast Empire is the dominant power in former Veer and Parndra, a region now only known as Felkrast. The Felkrast Empire was founded in 1968 FR by Emperor Levhan Heloss, when he conquered all of Veer and sent the Tahlanva and Riyan courts into exile during the events of The Leaving. Emperor Levhan Heloss' conquest was largely successful due to the Felkrast reliance on technology and natural science as opposed to the Spirit worship and magical reliance of his enemies, leaving them virtually defenseless during The Leaving. Support from neutral cities and separatists from competing courts was also an important factor, as the Emperor was able to rally his former enemies to his cause, convincing them that their masters, the Great Spirits, had turned on them. His vision was to create a new world order where mortals would be independent of the Spirits, and renounce their sorcery in favor of science and progress. Political Structure Felkrast is ruled by an Emperor, divided between thirteen provinces. Each province is governed by a Gilded Warden, a trusted servant chosen by the Emperor. The Emperor has the absolute power, but his Wardens act as advisors, and may bring their own opinions and ideas to the table, but have no final say over the Empire as a whole. They are somewhat more free to decide things that affect their respective provinces, but cannot do anything too drastic as they are closely monitored by other governing bodies who report their actions to the Emperor. The power is divided in three tiers: The First Court, which consists of the Emperor and his Chosen. The Second Court, in which the thirteen Wardens share their opinions with the Emperor and make decisions together. Lastly, the Third Court, which consists of the Ministers of the Provinces. The people of each province choose five ministers every five years: The Minister of Arms, the Minister of Commerce, the Minister of Arts, the Minister of Science and the Minister of Care. In the Third Court, the ministers discuss which issues they find the most important, to convince their respective Wardens to put them into motion for the good of the province. Before the Wardens attend meetings in The Second Court, their Ministers gather to convince them to bring up an important issue with the Emperor, if need be. The people of Felkrast do not enjoy full freedom of speech, and reserve only the right to vote for their Ministers. They are free to speak their mind and discuss political issues publically, even criticize the Courts, as long as their advice is constructive and well-worded. Religious freedom is also present, but limited. Spirit worship or anything related to Ivirixis and Morianisi is strictly forbidden and punished severely. Military presence differs from province to province, but in most major cities, patrolling guards and military parades are common. Felkrast as a whole is closely monitored by the secret Fourth Court, an organization of spies and their spymasters, the Ministers of Order. Despite its rigid rule and militaristic nature, Felkrast is relatively peaceful, and as a whole, wealthier than most other parts of the world. As long as citizens are willing to sacrifice a little personal freedom, they can enjoy a life in peace and prosperity. Technology Felkrast is in many provinces the most technologically advanced part of Orcarint. Communication across the Empire are made easy with the help of Beacon Halls, large buildings housing so-called Wave Beacons that receive and send signals between one another. Public Beacon Halls have rentable spots that anyone can use to communicate with another Beacon Hall anywhere in Felkrast. Wave Beacons aren’t small enough for everyone to use at home, and so Beacon Halls are a practical and cheap solution for anyone who wishes to contact another city instantly. In other cases, most people write letters that are sent by land or by air. Personal transportation for working class citizens is for the most part affordable, although most will have to settle for a Tapho lizard, as the runes necessary to power mechanized travel are relatively expensive. Public transportation is done either by boat or by Whipflyer caravans. In the homes of everyday citizens in most parts of Felkrast, people can make use of running water, adjustable heating and efficient ventilation. Geography & Climate Stretching from Cradle's west coast to the borderlands of Mavetha, The Felkrast Empire is now the largest in known history. Central Felkrast is mostly savannahs and mountainous regions, varying greatly in elevation and forest density. For the most part, the climate is quite hot and dry, since central Felkrast is on the equator. The largest cities are often far away from each other, as the original settlements had trouble communicating thousands of years ago due to the harsh terrain that separated them. Central Felkrast is populated by all sorts of wildlife, most notably Etohe, Wild Tapho and Roundhogs. In the evenings on the vast savannahs, you can see packs of Noakten Prowlers sprinting into the sunset as Leatherwisps dance high up in the sky. When it rains on rare occasion, Molestriders come up from the ground and float next to flowers and trees to soak in the rain. Up in the mountains, Roundhogs roll through the cliffs and smash into one another. It’s a common job to scoop up Roundhog shells and corpses up in the mountainous regions. The air in Central Felkrast is generally thicker with Black Dust since it’s around the area where the Gate was located, and it was also a part of what used to be Parndra, where spirit activity was incredibly high. As a result, the sky is a bit more turquoise, a stark contrast to the yellow-tinted plains and gray mountains. Southern Felkrast is a little bit colder, and faces the ocean. The climate is more humid, and as such, more dense forests are spread across the landscape. In the Molamt province and its surrounding areas, trees can grow thick and tall enough to completely block out the sunlight, rendering its own isolated climate under the forest canopies. These dense “dome-woods” can be seen in several places around Felkrast, but in the Southern Regions, it is much more common. In the forests, Molestriders are much more common than in Central Felkrast, as well as their larger cousins, the Miststriders. Aside from the usual Wild Tapho, some creatures originally native to Mavetha have migrated to Felkrast, such as the Unui Jo. The Northern Regions of Felkrast have even since the First Reunion been suffering from deforestation and drought, rendering most of it a vast, open desert. Some plants and animals survive and thrive in the desert, but most of them are deadly, aggressive predators. Among them, the Serpent Crab and the Sandworm. Most of these animals are much smaller today than they were two thousand years ago, but they still pose a considerable threat to anyone traveling on foot. Highways have been built to accommodate Floaters and protect caravans from attacks, but it is still not entirely safe to travel through the desert. The capital cities located in the desert, Komno and Domkerra, are built as sturdy fortresses to keep attackers out, both from above and below. Most of Domkerra is built around refurbished Aeravan ruins, and the people of Northern Felkrast have taken a lot of inspiration and knowledge of the desert from the ancient Aeravan people. The Aeravans have left a great deal of relics behind them, most notably the harnesses from the mythical Masked Giants, a now extinct species, behemoths that could grow up to ten meters tall. The Aeravans gave them giant masks and saddles, and used them in defense of their homeland in the devastating war in the 6th century. The bones and masks of the giants litter the desert, and provide decent shelter for lost travelers. Naming Conventions In all Imperial provinces, most individuals have two names: A star name and a blood name. Some individuals however, carry a third name spoken before the two others, the champion name. The star name is the unique name given to the child at birth, which is what they will be known as. The blood name is the name of the family, which all members of the family have in common. It is typically spoken after the star name. The champion name is given to individuals of extraordinary importance, those who have performed great deeds, brought honor to their family in battle or as a commendation for service to the Emperor. The Emperor’s First Court has the authority to declare champion names. When someone is given a champion name, they are given a choice. They can either accept their new champion name as well as adopting it as their blood name, or they can immortalize their old blood name and bring glory to their house by using its name as their champion name. Both choices are considered honorable and respectable, but many families tend to gravitate towards immortalizing their name rather than being given a new one by the Emperor.